You got it right: YouTube has partnered with Shopify to offer all users new live shopping tools to buy products without leaving the website…
A partnership that will change the opportunities for brands
In its current state, shopping on YouTube is entirely doable, but not terribly convenient. Creators can add links to their products in the description, which takes you to another website where you can view the product and decide whether to buy it or not. While this is a nice addition, it’s not actually what YouTube envisions as the future of shopping.
By announcing its partnership with Shopify, YouTube is making available to all content creators a new purchase option in the Explore tab starting next week. Without leaving the platform, users will be able to purchase directly from a brand’s YouTube channel.
The partnership, dubbed YouTube Shopping, builds on an existing partnership with Google, and will allow merchants to integrate their online stores with YouTube, which reaches more than 2 billion monthly users.
According to Kaz Nejatian, VP of Product at Shopify:
“Commerce today is multi-channel and YouTube is one of the most influential channels on the planet. Shopify’s new YouTube integration will fundamentally change the opportunities for independent brands in the creator economy. We’re excited to extend our long-term partnership with Google to push the boundaries of D2C commerce on YouTube. »
Towards a better shopping experience on YouTube
Shopify, a SaaS-based e-commerce platform, essentially allows merchants to create a storefront that can then be managed as a standalone site. It can also be integrated into partner platforms – these integrations are generally adapted to each platform in terms of product display. Product purchases can then be made on these platforms, with Shopify taking care of the logistics of the transactions.
So someone watching a video on YouTube might see a list of items on the page that a creator thinks they might be interested in. If you watch a video on a tech YouTube channel, you may see gadgets that you can purchase directly from the page using Shopify. Creators can manage the products included in the “Shopping” tab of YouTube Studio.
Shopify merchants can sell their full range of products on YouTube Shopping in three ways:
- Shop tab: a new tab is added to a merchant’s YouTube channel to showcase all of their products;
- Videos: Merchants can display a list of products under on-demand videos;
- Live stream: They can tag and pin products at key times during a live stream. Picture-in-picture reading means consumers can watch as they make the purchase.
YouTube tops product discovery
According to the global consumer survey “Global Voices: Cross-Border Shopper Insights”, conducted by e-commerce company ESW, YouTube ranked as the top social network used to discover new products across all groups. demographics, with the exception of baby boomers. Of the Gen Z survey respondents:
- 55% said YouTube is a primary discovery channel (tied with Instagram);
- Just like 53% of Generation Y or Millennials;
- And 47% of Gen X respondents.
For now, YouTube said the new pay-site features will be rolling out for creators in the US, with no mention for other countries including France. Creators will also need to meet a few eligibility requirements to activate YouTube’s new shopping features. Another essential criterion: creators must have at least 10,000 subscribers.
Sources: YouTube, Shopify